Denon 1906 vs Pioneer 1016 vs Yamaha 659

Interesting. I just replaced my Denon 1905 (previous year version of the 1906) because it has been in the shop for a month with no end in site. I only had the receiver for 14 months before it crapped out, so that kind of soured me on Denon.

I ended up getting the Yamaha HTR-5960, which is basically the same as the RX-V659. The only difference between the two is the 659 has a second zone (my Denon had that - never used it) and a 12v trigger. It looked like the best bang for the buck.

If the Pioneer 1015 were still available, I would have probably gone for that, but I didn't like the 1016. Do a search, but the consensus seems to be the 1015 was a much better receiver than the 1016, and Pioneer crippled the new model so it wouldn't compete as well against their lowest Pioneer Elite model.

Another one to add to your list is the Marantz SR-4001, which was just announced last week and should be available soon. If it had been available now, I very well may have got it. The Marantz doesn't have as many bells and whistles as some of the others, but their signal processing is top notch. For that matter, check out the previous model, the SR-4600. From all the reviews I've read, it's a great entry level receiver and I've seen them on E*** for under $300.

Since you're buying locally, go check out each model in person and listen for yourself. You really can't go wrong with any of those, so it may come down to which one has the features you want most, or even which one has a better remote control.

Denon receivers may be fine. I recently had such a bad experience with a Denon CD changer, however, that I am staying away from all their products. Of the 3 you listed, I prefer Yamaha. Without that restriction, I would choose Onkyo.

I am also in the market for a receiver and not sure which to pick?! Among the list, which one has HDMI switching? It seems like only Pio has it, right?

So, the 1016 is not as good as 1015? What about Elite 80XTV? Is that much better than 1016 (last year the entry Elite and 1015 were almost the same)?

I actually like the sound of Pioneers and Denons over the Yamahas. That is a blanket statement and there may be exceptions that I do not know about. After all, the sound is really what it is all about, right?

They do sound a bit different from each other... so why not listen for yourself and decide?

In terms of features, Pioneer has the most features and is the only one with HDMI pass through... not sure how important that is. If you have more than 1 HDMI devices (or plan to get), then Pioneer is your choice.

Over the years I have owned a couple of Pioneer receivers and they have always had a lot of features, worked well, and were free of problems. The HDMI inputs are nice to have, so I voted Pioneer. All three are decent receivers. Good luck with whatever you end up buying.

I was in the hunt for the last two months. At the outset I was considering the Onkyo 603 and then the 604, but most of the well known ID would not ship to Canada. Then my attention was drawn to HK. I was almost ready to pull the trigger on the AVR340 or the disconstinued 435 from J&-, but got cold feet on having the whole idea of having to deal with any problems with shipping and/or warranty.

In the end I bought the yammy at the local dealer for the same landed price point I set for the other brands. The Yamaha has all the features I wanted, particularly the Zone 2 that the Pio lacked. I didn't give the Denon much consideration.

Best of luck with your decision.

Im also weighing the 1016 vs the 659 (5960). If I had to buy today I would go with Yamaha since they're so close in features yet the Pio facia is too cluttered and unattractive.

But Pioneer has HDMI that Yamaha doesn't!

I know but HDMI switching isn't appealing to me as it is - there would have to be analog upconversion as well to make it useful.

Most HDTV's have dual HDMI inputs and a digital audio output anyway. It will probably be simpler to just switch it on the TV and pass the audio back to the receiver. Two HDMI cables + a digital coax is probably cheaper than three HDMI cables anyway But I'll admit that it is nice to have a single HDMI cable running to the TV.

I agree.. not 100% usable... BUT, you claimed feature-wise Yamaha and Pioneer were the same, but they are not... Pioneer has the HDMI feature which COULD be useful for a few folks, specially if you wanna hang your TV on the wall as two cables (HDMI+Component) through is much easier to work with than 3 (2HDMI+Component).

True. It will be a consideration for those who could make use of the switching. I'm still in component land.

Dont worry about the vote man, they are all similar. Go listen for urself, or if u dont got that chance, CHOOSE the one that has THE FEATURE you MUST HAVE!

Like if you MUST have HDMI, then Pioneer... if something else, then choose it accordingly.

The people voting for the Denon - can you chime in on why you prefer it?

I dont need HDMI, or THX.
Which one as the best auto equalization?
Which auto equalization works best, if it does all, in the subwoofer range?

per CNET
*pioneer 1016 - 7.7 yes on auto equalization, 120W (per CNET if dont need THX or HDMI then 816 is the same for less $)
*denon 1906 - 7.0 no auto equalization, 85W
*Yamaha 659 - 7.7 Yes on Auto Equalization, , 100W. (CNET like the auto equalization better then Audioholics who rate this a 4.5 of 5 or a 9 to CNETS 7.7)

Guess Id go with Yamaha. Maybe the Pioneer 816 becuase of nice review of auto equalization on CNET).

Well, I haven't heard any of those recievers through any setup I'd trust. But I have owned both Pioneer and Denon recievers. Both are quality builds. The Pioneer I probably bought back in '94 and it has been passed on to my younger brother (15 and it's his first AV reciever) and still sounds good. The Denon 2105 is my current reciever which I purchased grey market about 18 to 24 months ago. It has also been a solid piece of equipment. If you're working with a small a/v dealer see if he'll let you demo the equipment in home. It's the best way for you to figure out which one you'll like the best.

Here's a site that they have reviewed quite a lot, in German but u can translate. http://www.areadvd.de/hardware/index...staerker.shtml

Pioneer 916 was rated very high, better than denon 1906. RXV659 was also rated very high, no 1016 test, but it must be even better than 916. So, i guess based on that, the choice is between 659 and 1016...